Muse have given us a serving of their next musical chapter in the form of their new choon ‘Dig Down’.
Their transformation into ’21st Century Queen’ is almost complete with the theatrical choral showstopper, as the earth-conquering rock trio continue along the same path they set with their 2015 rock opera Drones.
It’s hard to tell whether the band are disappearing further up their own supermassive black holes with this bombastic new direction, but fans en masse don’t really seem to be digging it, with stacks of Facebook commenters slagging the single as “Madness 2.0”:
Bellamy explains: “When I was writing this song, I was looking to counteract the current negativity in the world and give inspiration, optimism and hope to people to fight for the causes they believe in; that as individuals we can choose to change the world if we want to.”
Speaking with triple j, the frontman adds that the tune is the first in a “planned series” of standalone songs and videos leading up to the release of the band’s eighth studio album, which has been given a tentative 2018 release date.
“It’s early days to see what the whole album is going to be like, there’s only a couple of songs at the moment,” he explains. “I’m going to write more songs over the next year and one of the reasons I wanted to put this out so quickly is because it felt quite reactive to the climate in the world right now.”
And in a post-Brexit, Donald Trump world, the trio’s penchant for politically-charged rally cries and fiery dystopian themes has officially reached a critical mass.
“There’s a bit of a bell-end who’s become the President, you know? An embarrassing buffoon” Bellamy continues. “But aside from the silliness, he’s genuinely a quite frightening character. I’m living in Los Angeles most of the time now, so I’m living some of the anxiety that’s in the culture.
“[There’s] a bit of underlying anxiety about what the future may hold. I think this song was in some ways a reaction to find that strength, part of us that is able to ‘Dig Down’ and get through a difficult time and imagine there’s going to be something better in the future…. That’s why I didn’t want this song held back until an album next year.”
As for the sonic direction for album number eight, Bellamy says we can expect more ‘Madness’…
“I feel like we’re going in a direction – I wouldn’t call it solely electronic, but I think there’s definitely an emphasis on groove and beats,” he says.
“Living in L.A. listening to the radio, there’s definitely a bit of hip-hop that seeps in, a lot more in the US than what I’m used to in England. So there’s definitely a bit more groove and emphasis on heavy, hard sounding beats – moving away from traditional rock drums.”
Your first taste of that new sound ‘Dig Down’ is accompanied by an action-packed video, which was directed by Lance Drake and features amputee model and activist Lauren Wasser.
Catch it below.
